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Target vs walmart comparison shot
Target vs walmart comparison shot
Target vs walmart comparison shot
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This goal of this analysis is to shadow some light on K-Mart and Target and with the help of extensive research. In this analysis we can find out what each company can do, where they lack and what has to be done in order to keep the company profitable and alive. Thus, we will try to look at the Target wholly and then it will identify a successful business strategy and thus show that the strategy has moved the Target into one of such leaders in the industry. When we will take a look at K-Mart and then we will move on the identification of a failed business strategy and then show that the strategy has been holding this company at the back. After that we will try to perform a cross- case analysis by contrasting and comparing the case studies on the points of difference and the parity. This will help us in looking at a side by side difference of a SWOT analysis and also the five force analysis.
Case study 1: Target Co.
The first Target store had been opened in the year 1962 in the suburb of Roseville, Minneapolis with a tough focus on the easy shopping at a competitive amount of discount prices. In the year 2013 in which the Target remains very committed for providing an easy shopping experience for the guests by delivering the distinctive merchandise and the outstanding value. The Target currently has been the second largest retailer in America with Target.com and it is ranked as the mostly visited retail web sites (Target Co, 2013).
The Target currently has about24 stores in Canada and about 1784 stores in the U.S. The Target has over team members which are over 16000 who work in a team in order to act as a bridge in between the stores and the suppliers. Worldwide the Target is around 365000 ...
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... which both has is the capitalizing of the emerging markets. And the similarity in the threats to them is the US economy.
The differences are that Target has a positive perception of customers and also Kmart does not have a good brand strategy. The opportunity available to Target is that they can expand in Pharmacy business.
Conclusion
We can see that Target is successful due to its good brand strategy and thus in order to keep up the success the company must change their strategies and branding so that they can match the needs and the wants of the customers. Even when the companies have a lot of similarities still the differences are greater. Kmart took decisions at a late point and still struggling to capitalize on the opportunities and Target has been active always to capture opportunities and overcome its weaknesses.
As I have outlined in the charts below, there are various similarities and differences between Wal-Mart and Target. Wal-Mart is Target’s primary competitor, and vice versa. Wal-Mart has a strong market presence in its global markets and has a diverse range of products and services that are affordable and available in stock. Target, on the other hand, does not have a strong market presence or efficient product supply; however, Target’s physical environment and innovative products further the brand’s image and value. Unfortunately, Target and Wal-Mart are both e-commerce laggards with major competitors such as Amazon. Target faces complications with their pricing strategies and their product availability, which hinders their strength when competing
Target business is based on big box centers and supercenters, which are not preferred by many shopper who normally like shopping in small convenience store within the neighborhood.
Target has many competitors in the market, and the level of competition is highly intense. Some of its main rivals are Wal-Mart stores, Home Depot and Costco Wholesale Corp. All of them produce similar products as well as offer almost the same services to their consumers. Naturally, the organization would need a strategy that helps it to stand out and to distinguish it from its competitors, thus, Target 's positioning was based on more than just pricing; it combined quality and style. This was the differentiation strategy that have always been applied since the launch of the organization.
Target, the nation's #2 discount chain, now operates more than 1,500 Target and Super Target stores in 47 states, as well as an online business called Target.com. Target and its larger grocery-carrying stores, Super Target, have carved out a niche by offering more upscale, fashion-forward merchandise than rivals Wal-Mart and Kmart. After years of struggling to turn around its Marshall Fields and Mervyns departments stores divisions, the discounter sold them both in 2004. Target also owns apparel supplier The Associated Merchandising Corp. and issues Target Visa and its proprietary Target Card (www.Answers.com/topic/target-corporation).
In order for Target to have been successful, first and foremost, the retailer should have known that they would not be able to beat their competitor, Walmart, in a price war. That alone, is a losing battle. So, a higher quality of products, fewer locations, and a better understanding of Canadian tastes could have propelled the retailer into establishing, for the long term, a profitable global presence with our Canadian neighbors.
According to www.targetcorp.com, Target is an upscale discount retail chain that sells quality products at attractive prices, and prides itself on clean, spacious, and guest-friendly stores. Target is the second largest "general merchandise" retailer (behind Wal-Mart); selling almost anything one would need to complete the "one stop shop", especially with the addition of the SuperTarget stores. The first Target opened in Roseville, Minnesota in 1962. Since then, 1,330 stores located in forty-seven different states, which includes the 141 SuperTarget stores, have opened nationwide. Target also has twenty-two distribution centers located in nineteen states. In addition to the vast number of store locations, Target also has other businesses that include: Target.com, Target Financial Services, Associated Merchandising Corporation, and Target commercial Interiors. Through all the key businesses, Target employs nearly 300,000 people from diverse backgrounds. The current Chairman and CEO of Target is Bob Ulrich.
Target Corporation being a retail industry, the structure by product grouped to a functional level practices works the best. This is necessary for the other functional levels to collaborate as a single team to produce a positive customer shopping experience. Target Corporation further divided the functional level into a geographic area to exercise management tasks effectively with the given authority. Each structure of the management at the geographic level has a strategy discussion, a line of communication, growth, and progress reporting according to the corporate reporting plan. Jana Potts who manages Target Corporation store has closer to 300, 000 employees working for her and the effective can be improved if the role is broken within domestic into channels, stores into broader segments and a separate global position. The rapidly growing online channel and global expansion are necessary to support Target Corporation's strategy of internal growth and sustain it for long term sustainability. These structural changes will allow Target Corporation to connect with its employee at a functional level and bring changes faster, track and monitor the
In other words, it wants to offer lower prices than a competitor like Target in order to drive foot traffic and sales. Wal-Mart has been effective in its quest, but Target has an edge in one area, and it 's an area that has the potential to grow. Target 's secret weapon is its REDcard. For Target customers using the REDcard, Target is actually cheaper than Wal-Mart. This is because Target REDcard members save 5% on most purchases. Plus, Target REDcard members visit the store more often and buy more items. Target is also offering free online shipping for REDcard members, which has led to significant online penetration. Wal-Mart has the edge, but not when you include Target 's
The key issues for K-Mart strategies are finding the right cost level for an opportunity to be aggressive, and differentiating the product for consumer in terms of different consumer and different intangible product attributes. K-Mart and Sears should be combined with a new overall corporate competitive strategy using a cost focus. This may turn out to be the only sensible strategy, and the one which best describes the strategy adopted. Strategies of cost leadership and product differentiation are often described as if they were mutually exclusive you can either pursue one or the other, but not both.
In general merchandise retailing, Wal-Mart’s primary competitors are Target and Kmart. Retail superstores such as Circuit City and Bed, Bath, and Beyond, also provide retail competition. A survey found that the majority of respondents favored Wal-Mart over stores like Target and Kmart. Respondents claimed Wal-Mart offered lower prices, better variety and selection, and good quality. The needs of consumers is an important economic feature in all competitive environments. What attributes (price, variety, quality, etc.) prompt buyers to choose one retailer over another is very important in the competitive landscape.
The Target corporations in plans to grow converted retail stores to retail super stores. In 2004 Target added 65 new merchandise stores and eighteen new Target Superstores all across the United States.
1. The Discount Department Store. Target prefers to be called as the latter instead of just department store. Expect more, pay less. With this tagline, the customers expect to purchase more items and pay the least amount possible. Not like other retail industries like its competitor Kmart and Wal-Mart, Target maintains retail value in terms of product offerings. They are known in their designer’s items in clothes, exclusive beauty products, categorized and functional goods, and seasonal offerings. It also sells the greatest number of gift cards among its rival business.
As revealed by the SWOT analysis earlier Kmart has potential to pull itself out of its current position of facing closure. In order to exploit opportunities and counter threats Kmart needs to build on these competencies to strengthen its position and counter internal weaknesses against the single largest industry threat - increased competition in a mature market.
On January 22, 2002, Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection becoming the largest retailer ever to do so in U.S. history. Most industry analysts attributed the immediate cause of the company's bankruptcy filing to a dull holiday season and stiff competition from WalMart and Target as the chain's more fundamental problem. But competition wasn't the root cause of Kmart's consistently poor performance. The real reason for Kmart's poor performance is that Kmart never had a marketing strategy. Kmart completely misunderstood its market and was positioning itself in the wrong direction. Also, on the strategic side, there are issues of where stores were located. On the whole, Kmart stores did not seem to be sited as well as the stores of the competition. Then there was the issue of technology. While Wal-Mart was becoming the relentless efficiency engine that we know today by investing in technology and streamlining the supply chain, Kmart held back. As Wal-Mart developed an infrastructure that enabled it to lower prices, Kmart slipped into a price disadvantage. This paper discusses these strategic problems that led to Kmart's poor performance.
Overtime, a combination of poor customer service, messy stores, and lengthy checkout processes have led to the failure of the Kmart and Sears merger. One-time loyal customers, who routinely shopped at these stores, no longer felt appreciated or that the organization desired their business. Since they no longer felt important, customer chose to give their business to more deserving competitors such as Target.